Page 46 - ELITE PLUS MAGAZINE VOL7

This orangutan is spotted breaking off tree branches to build A Thomas’s langur, an endemic primate of northern Sumatra. a nest.target of our trip, the Sumatran orangutan. As we reached the relatively even ground, Robet talked to the guide of a passing group of trekkers, then gave us a satisfying smile and a warning to be ready as an orangutan was spotted nearby. Five minutes later Robet stopped and pointed upward at a tall tree ahead. And there it was! A full grown male orangutan was looking down at us from the tree trunk. Within seconds, the repeating sounds of shutters erupted as all six of us fired our cameras at the orangutan, which did not seem to be perturbed and did not flee or looked fierce. On the contrary he slowly and calmly climbed down toward us as if he was curious of what we were doing and wanted to observe closer. After having scruti- nized our group for a few minutes and satisfied that the objects we held in our hands were not dangerous, the44 Elite+orangutan retreated up the tree and soon disappeared.At this point I’d like to give a few facts about the Sumatran orangutan. Two species of orangutans exist in the world – the Sumatran orangutan found only on the island of Sumatra and the Bornean orangutan on the island of Borneo. I’ ve written about the Bornean orangutan in the first issue of Elite Plus published in June/July 2014. The Sumatran species is thinner with a longer face and longer hair with a paler red color. The males stand about 1.4 m tall and weigh 90 kg, while the females are smaller having an average height of 90 cm and an average weight of 45 kg. The orangutans, both Sumatran and Bornean, are among the most intelligent primates and have a long lifespan of more than 50 years. The Sumatran orangutan is more arboreal than the Bornean species, spendingmost of the time in trees due to the fact that there are Sumatran tigers roaming the Sumatran rainforest while such large predators are absent in Borneo. On the dietary requirement, the Sumatran orangutan prefers fruits especially figs and jackfruits, but also takes bird eggs and small vertebrates.Our first encounter with a Sumatran orangutan has encouraged us to search for more with Robet’s efficient guidance. Soon we spotted a female orangutan with her young feeding on leaves and fruits on a large fig tree. The two apes stared briefly at us and continued feeding themselves by moving from tree to tree as we followed them taking photographs along the way. We stayed with the two orangutans until they moved further away and disappeared from sight.After a simple lunch of chicken fried rice Robet and his team brought from the village, we continued on the